Rei vs. Obito (Part 2)

Tonight, Uchiha Obito had no intention of leaving.

He stood in the shadows beneath the moonlight, his gaze icy and anger burning beyond his control. He silently swore to himself that no matter what, he would capture the Masked Man who had stolen his name with his own hands.

His earlier attacks had accomplished nothing. He hadn't even touched the other man's clothes. The ease with which he dodged, and that unconcerned look in his eyes, felt like a taunt.

Obito fell silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke in a low voice. "You're not Obito."

His voice was low, but his tone was utterly certain.

"There's only one person in Obito's heart," Obito said. Anger and pain mingled in his eyes as memories of Rin surged through his mind.

Uchiha Rei watched him quietly and sneered inwardly. Of course I'm not you.

He didn't say those words aloud. Tonight, he was Obito.

Rei could tell that his actions had thoroughly enraged the other man. Obito was no longer the mastermind behind the scenes. His gaze had lost all reason, leaving only jealousy and obsession.

I didn't expect that just holding Uchiha Izumi would upset you this much.

If the woman in my arms were Nohara Rin instead, would you even forget all about the Eye of the Moon Plan?

Uchiha Izumi still refused to let go. Her arms were wrapped tightly around Uchiha Rei's neck, like a greedy octopus. She rested her face lightly against his chest, breathing softly as if trying to imprint his warmth upon herself.

"For Rin, I'll create a beautiful world filled with love." Uchiha Rei suddenly spoke in a quiet, even tone, but his words were as sharp as a surgeon's scalpel.

The words pierced Uchiha Obito's heart like an arrow. His pupils contracted, and his expression changed abruptly.

If looks could kill, Uchiha Rei would have died a thousand times over by now.

Space flickered, and Uchiha Rei, carrying Uchiha Izumi, descended from the great tree to the ground.

The moment they landed, even the unremarkable tree beside them seemed to tremble under the oppressive atmosphere.

Uchiha Rei tried to set Uchiha Izumi down, but he couldn't pry her away. It was as though she wanted to melt into his embrace.

"You're awfully clingy," Uchiha Rei said quietly, with a hint of helplessness in his voice.

But Uchiha Izumi seemed not to hear him. Her fingers glided over his shoulder, lightly tracing his collarbone. She pressed her cheek closer against him, tears in her eyes.

Izumi didn't care about the battle or the danger. All she cared about was whether this moment was real.

It took Uchiha Rei quite some time to pull Uchiha Izumi off him and set her down. He laid defensive seals around her to ensure her safety.

The instant Uchiha Izumi's feet touched the ground, a powerful sense of loss welled up inside her.

She lowered her head to look at her hands. Those brief few minutes had felt more profound and more full of life than her entire past.

She never wanted to lose the feeling of being held so tightly again. She had even forgotten what Uchiha Itachi looked like. Her body and heart now belonged completely to the man who called himself "Uchiha Obito."

She would never forget the name "Uchiha Obito" for the rest of her life.

Uchiha Rei turned around and faced Uchiha Obito once more.

To his surprise, Obito hadn't attacked at all while he was setting Uchiha Izumi down. He had only stared at him intently, like a beast trapped in a cage, ready to pounce at any moment.

Perhaps seeing someone else in his arms while he called himself Obito had completely unhinged the other man.

You can't even stand to see me holding a woman. If the woman in my arms really were Rin... would you explode on the spot?

Uchiha Rei stepped forward and asked coolly, "Who are you, exactly? Are you that Uchiha Madara?"

Obito fell silent for a moment. Was he Uchiha Obito, or Uchiha Madara?

He didn't answer. Instead, he slowly drew the katana at his waist, determination in his eyes. Then he blurred forward, charging at Uchiha Rei with a rush of wind!

Uchiha Rei sneered and drew the katana he had taken from Kurama Yui out of thin air. Its blade was as dark as the night.

The two men flashed forward, their blades crossing in a flurry of light.

Obito didn't turn intangible, and Rei didn't use Kamui. This was a contest of the most basic, purest kind: blade against blade, strength against strength. Sparks flew, and the air seemed to tear apart.

Meanwhile, Uchiha Izumi was still sitting on the ground, gazing dreamily at Uchiha Rei's back. She whispered, "Obito!"

It sounded like a lover's whispered words in a dream.

Izumi didn't know who that man really was. She only knew that she had fallen for him.

Though Obito had been implanted with Hashirama's cells and possessed a powerful body, Uchiha Rei still sent him flying with a single strike. He slammed heavily into the ground.

Clearly, a strong body didn't mean invincible Taijutsu. No matter how tough the flesh, without years of training, it was nothing more than a hollow shell.

Might Guy was the perfect example. Through daily training, pure Taijutsu could even shake the gods. Uchiha Obito also possessed impressive close-combat skills, but he still fell far short of Rei.

But Uchiha Rei wasn't fighting at full strength. If he pushed Obito into using Kamui to escape, finding him again would be nearly impossible.

So he deliberately held back, making his blade seem sluggish and feigning weakness.

This change made Uchiha Obito think his opponent was nothing special after all. A trace of contempt appeared in his eyes. He snorted and raised a hand to activate a technique.

Wood Style: Impaling Technique!

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" Dozens of wooden spikes sprouted from his arm and shot toward Uchiha Rei in a dense barrage. The spikes multiplied as chakra poured into them, forming an impenetrable web of attacks in an instant.

Yet the wooden spikes passed through Rei's body as if through an illusion. The next moment, his figure vanished into thin air.

"Just as I thought, it had no effect..." Obito frowned, but the image of his late teacher surfaced in his mind.

The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.

On the Night of the Nine-Tails... I lost to his strange Flying Thunder God Technique Second Stage.

Obito's thoughts stirred. If the opponent's attack worked like his own Kamui, then there would have to be a brief moment when he became tangible.

Just as his teacher had once taught him.

At the zero point between passing through and making contact, it came down to speed and prediction.

The next moment, he launched an attack. His katana spun, sweeping out three successive arcs of sword energy. The air tore apart with a piercing shriek.

At the same time, he darted forward and slashed down with lightning speed!

Uchiha Rei's expression didn't change as he faced the fierce attack. He shifted one foot slightly and blocked Obito's rapid downward strike with a single hand on his sword.

Just as their blades clashed, Uchiha Rei suddenly felt the ground give way beneath him. The soil collapsed!

Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique!

It was a clone? The one who had attacked earlier was Obito's Shadow Clone, while his real body had already used Earth Release to burrow underground. As Rei's blade clashed with the clone's, the real Obito burst out of the ground and grabbed his ankle with pinpoint precision.

"Got you," Obito murmured, a vicious glint in his eyes.

In an instant, Uchiha Rei's body was forcibly pulled into Kamui Space.

The battle seemed to be over.

Uchiha Obito climbed back out of the ground and let out a soft breath, his expression complicated as he looked at the spot where the Masked Man had vanished.

"Sensei... I never thought you'd still be teaching me even after your death."

A brief look of melancholy and exhaustion crossed his face. But his joy at winning didn't last long.

"Whoosh—"

A familiar figure appeared once more in the real world. Without warning, he coalesced out of thin air and stood before him.

It was Uchiha Rei.

Obito's Kamui had failed.